Gardner set the record straight after his defensive mishap


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The New England Patriots invested heavily into wide receiver A.J. Brown with the blockbuster trade that went down June 1, and if his highlight play from training camp on Tuesday is any indication of what is to come this season, the move will pay off for the reigning AFC champions. In a joint practice with the Indianapolis Colts, Brown beat star cornerback Sauce Gardner in emphatic style on a 1-on-1 route.

Brown stopped on a dime on a sit route, and when he turned back to receive the ball, Gardner's feet slipped and caused him to stumble onto his hands. Brown hauled in the pass, turned upfield and would have forced Gardner to make an open-field tackle if the play was live.

Video of the play made the rounds on social media and generated a strong reaction to Brown's ability to get separation on the third-highest-paid cornerback in the NFL. Many have been quick over the last handful of months to jeer Gardner because of the calf injury he sustained last season, the immense amount of time he missed after joining the Colts and the sizable trade package Indianapolis gave up to acquire him. His snafu in coverage of Brown only added fuel to that fire.

Gardner pushed back against the cacophony of taunts aimed in his direction.

"all this from a 1on1 rep? ???? & a 8 yard sit route at that? its a reason that's the only one yall saw ????????" Gardner said in a since-deleted post.

When healthy, Gardner is among the stiffest defenders in the league. The 24-year-old displayed as much when he won Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2022 and opened his career with back-to-back selections to the All-Pro first team. But his production slipped slightly in the final stages of his New York Jets career, and his injury battle last season further prevented him from returning to the top of the elite ranks.

Gardner remains one of the faces of the cornerback position, though, and if there is anything meaningful to glean from one play in training camp, it could be more telling of a potential exemplary season for Brown than a down year for the Colts' defensive back.

While Brown racked up the third-most catches of his career, scored seven touchdowns and posted his sixth 1,000-yard season in his final run with the Philadelphia Eagles, he also raised concerns over his athletic trajectory. He averaged just 2.2 yards of separation on his routes in 2025, which is on the lower end of his already modest-at-best career mark. Pair that with his history of lower-body injuries, and there exist concerns that his best years are behind him.

If Brown can replicate the kind of route-running ability he displayed on that rep against Gardner, though, he can be the exact kind of difference-maker the Patriots seek in the passing game.

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